Cleveland, Ohio — A few Browns players, like Deshaun Watson and Amari Cooper, could see a large deposit in their bank accounts in the coming weeks.
It’s pay restructuring season for the Browns, and numerous players will be given upfront incentives in return for cap relief. It’s a win-win for clubs with wealthy owners who can write large checks.
The NFL salary ceiling was set on Friday at $255.4 million, an extraordinary $30 million increase per club above the previous year’s maximum of $224.8 million. That’s wonderful news for the Browns, who would have had to use more innovative financing if the increase had not been so significant.
Cleveland, OH— A select Browns players, like Deshaun Watson and Amari Cooper, may get a significant payment in their bank accounts in the coming weeks.
It’s pay restructuring season for the Browns, and several players will receive upfront incentives in exchange for cap relief. It benefits clubs with affluent owners who can pay hefty checks.
The NFL salary cap was established at $255.4 million on Friday, representing a $30 million increase per club above the previous year’s maximum of $224.8 million. That’s great news for the Browns, who would have had to utilize more creative financing if the raise hadn’t been so large.
But first, the Browns need to undertake some housekeeping and restructuring to get under the cap enough to meet their roster objectives this summer. Fortunately for them, that has not been an issue under Jimmy and Dee Haslam, who are eager to open their pockets to bring the Browns over the top and into the Super Bowl.
They would initially consider restructuring some of their high-paid players, such as Watson, Cooper, and Denzel Ward. The Browns retooled many of their top players last season, including Watson and Cooper, and will most likely do it again in the coming weeks, depending on how much they spend in free agency and trades.
The Browns may not make as much of a splash this spring as they did last year, when they signed Dalvin Tomlinson, Ogbo Okoronkwo, and Juan Thornill while trading for Elijah Moore, Dustin Hopkins, and Za’Darius Smith. But they still have holes to address, including one or two at receiver and one at defensive end, whether they re-sign Smith or go after the expected deep pool of edge rushers.
The Browns will always have the option of restructuring Watson, who has $63.977 million in cap charges over the final three years of his fully guaranteed $230 million contract, which pays $46 million per year. With Watson, it’s more a matter of when he’ll get the money, not if, and players normally accept the lump sum to invest or spend as they see fit. The Browns adjusted Watson’s contract in each of his first two seasons, cutting it to $402,500 in 2022 and $1.08 million in 2023.
Cooper’s cap charge for this season is $23.766 million, with a basic salary of $20 million, leaving plenty of room to borrow from him to pay the piper. The Browns can free up a considerable amount of space by handing him a restructure bonus and lowering the base.
Browns GM Andrew Berry has already stated that he will seek to retain Nick Chubb on the team following his terrible knee injury, implying that his $15.85 million cap charge will be reduced at some time, but likely not by March 13th. Options include an extension, a roster bonus, incentives, and void years.
If necessary, the Browns can seek cap relief from their No. 1 cornerback Denzel Ward. His cap charge is $23.462 million, while his base is $15.324 million.
The Browns have already lowered the bases of Pro Bowl players like Myles Garrett and David Njoku, so they are unlikely to do so again this season. Garrett, the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, has a cap charge of $20.151 million, yet his base salary is only $1.21 million due to a $11.524 million option bonus. Njoku’s base salary was also reduced to $1.21 million for this year during an August restructure, and he is owed a $11.79 million option bonus on March 19th.
The Browns have had to manage their money carefully in the aftermath of Watson’s massive contract, but it hasn’t stopped them from expanding the roster each summer, and many NFL teams are in the same situation. Watson is currently ninth in average compensation at $46 million, with four quarterbacks making more over $50 million, including Joe Burrow, who earns an NFL-high $55 million per year.
However, the $30 million ceiling increase announced on Friday afternoon is obviously beneficial.
